UPPSALA, SWEDEN, October 11, 2018 — Underscoring the on-going dramatic growth of its High Performance Audio business unit under the leadership of Niklas Thorin, Dirac Research, the global leader in digitally-optimized sound solutions, today announced the appointment of Lars Carlsson as General Manager of Automotive Audio, a new business unit that was previously contained within High Performance Audio. Lars joins Dirac with more than 25-years of experience in product engineering for the transportation industry.

“With Niklas at its helm, High Performance Audio –historically including both home theater and automotive initiatives – has grown to the point where there are simply too many opportunities for one manager to harvest,” Dirac Co-Founder and CEO Dr. Mathias Johansson said today. “The formation of a separate business unit for automotive and the appointment of Lars to lead that unit equips us with the management team required to capitalize on all opportunities present today and tomorrow.”

Lars Carlsson joins Dirac following a successful career at MTS Systems, where he served most-recently as European Integration Services Manager. He also previously served as Chief Engineer and Technical Director for Semcon AB; Vice President at Zound by Semcon; among others. Lars began his career at Saab Automobile and he earned his Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering, Control Theory, from the Faculty of Engineering at Lund University. Relating to audio and acoustics, Carlsson has over 20 years of experience in vehicle NVH – Noise, Vibration, and Harshness – a key attribute for many car OEMs.

“For over 15 years, Dirac has pushed the boundaries of digital sound, and in no industry has that been more true than automotive audio,” stated Carlsson. “The company’s pioneering digital audio solutions have been critical in creating a new calibre of in-vehicle listening experience. As we usher in the era of autonomous vehicles, which more heavily prioritizes in-car entertainment, I look forward to working with this great company and further establishing our technology as the reference standard in the car of the future.”

Dirac’s suite of digital audio optimization solutions – which includes Dirac Live, Dirac Unison, and Dirac Virtual Center, amongst others – resolves the acoustical challenges produced within a car cabin as a result of both the suboptimal positioning of the loudspeakers and the various seating locations within the vehicle – thereby producing a pristine, natural listening experience for drivers and passengers alike.

“Our company was born out of the automotive industry 15 years ago, and recent market successes prove that this sector will only continue to be an increasingly key component of our future success. We look forward to accelerating our category growth with Lars leading this new business unit, while Niklas continues his impressive expansion of our High Performance Audio business,” concluded Johansson.

Today, Dirac solutions are relied on by industry-leading Western brands such as Volvo, Bentley, Rolls Royce, and BMW. Earlier in 2018, the company broke into the fast-growing Chinese automotive market through a relationship with BYD Automotive. For more information on Dirac’s automotive audio solutions, click here. For hi-res photography, click here